Filming Locations:

Company:

Did You Know?

Trivia:

As this is the conclusion of the unofficial Three Flavors Cornetto Trilogy, the characters are seen eating peppermint with chocolate chip ice-cream - as what the Cornetto green wrapper represents. According to Edgar Wright, green represents science fiction and extraterrestrial elements, which is the main motif in the film. For Wright's other films, Shaun of The Dead, it was red / strawberry flavor, symbolizing blood and zombies while the second part, Hot Fuzz, it was blue/ vanilla symbolizing the police.See more »

Goofs:

Continuity: When Gary crosses off the tenth pub on the map, the figure of the "modern art" statue can be seen on the map just below the second and third pubs. But since this is the same map he used for the original crawl, before The Network arrived, and since the statue is apparently part of The Network, it should not appear on the map. It is also apparent that the statue was not there at the time of the original Golden Mile since they wonder about what it is when they pass it earlier in the night.See more »

Quotes:

[first lines] Gary King:Ever have one of those nights that starts out like any other, but ends up being the *best* night of your life?See more »

Five friends, 12 pubs, one night: the famed "Golden Mile" is a pub
crawl consisting of hopping from one bar to the next downing pints, and
Gary King (Simon Pegg, star and co-writer) is determined to complete it
with his best buddies after failing to do so 20 years ago. That's the
basic premise for "The World's End", also the name of the final pub in
the crawl. Director and co-writer Edgar Wright's British sci-fi comedy
is the third installment of the "Three Flavours Cornetto" trilogy,
rounding up 2004's "Shaun of the Dead" and 2007's "Hot Fuzz".

Back in 1990, when all-black leather outfits and Britpop were still
cool, Gary was the breezy leader of a rat pack (consisting of Nick
Frost, Paddy Considine, Martin Freeman and Eddie Marsan) in school, but
now he's a forty-plus alcoholic with nary a career. The only one in his
clique still decked in the same get-up he wore back then, he even
drives the same car with a cassette player. It's all indicative of how
little he's progressed since, especially juxtaposed against his
friends' power suits and careers in real estate, law and sales. They're
all juggling family commitments and other adult responsibilities.
Barging into their routine lives, Gary successfully convinces them to
reunite for a single night in their sleepy hometown to complete the
Golden Mile, going so far as to quiet the violent objections of his
closest mate Andrew (Frost) with a white lie about his family.

The journey across town through the 12 pubs (with epic-sound names,
too: The First Post, The Old Familiar, The Famous Cock, The Cross
Hands, The Good Companions, The Trusty Servant, The Two Headed Dog, The
Mermaid, The Beehive, The King's Head, The Hole in the Wall, and The
World's End) starts off fairly innocently, with Andrew being the only
one who initially refuses a single drop of alcohol amidst man-child
Gary's antics of trying to rekindle the nostalgic memories of his
youth. So desperate is Gary to complete the crawl that when he's
willing to down half-drunk glasses of beer outside a pub he was banned
from years ago. The rapidfire exchanges between the five buddies are
entertainingly comical, while revealing that their bonds of friendship
haven't aged as much as they have. In spite of that, minor conflict
appears in the form of the beguiling Sam (Rosamund Pike), whom Gary and
Steven (Considine) both loved at some point in their lives.

After the halfway point, things take a paranormal turn and the film ups
its over-the-top hilarity. No spoilers here, but be prepared to be
slack-jawed or just to laugh out loud at the fight scenes which are
interesting permutations of a typical toilet-in-bar brawl. Audiences
who've caught the previous two instalments will be none too surprised
by the film's tone. The action scenes unveil unexpected athleticism
from the five main leads, in particular Frost's physicality and ability
to intimidate.

Yet all this apparent silliness is a veneer for more complex issues.
There is more to this film than watching a few middle-aged men down
pints. "Starbucking", a term used to describe the erosion of
individuality and novelty by convention and commerciality, is seen as a
negative, an affront to Gary who is clearly obsessed with a perhaps
over-glorified past. "The World's End" also explores the issues
surrounding the instinct to fight adulthood, highlighting the necessity
of shedding one's juvenile past  however tightly one may want to hold
on to it  in exchange for personal growth and societal success.

Except for the somewhat uneven pacing, the story feels fresh, the
script is smart, and for the most part, Pegg's Gary is genuinely
likable despite his obnoxious immaturity. Pierce Brosnan makes a cameo
as a high school teacher who reinforces the resentment that comes from
'not knowing what you want to do with your life'. The ending will focus
on exactly that, delivered in a way that is unexpectedly moving.

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